Menu Planning for May 2014

If you’re planning a menu for May, there are a few holidays to consider and many fresh fruits and vegetables making their entrance for the summer.

Plan for May:

Plan Ahead for June:
Full Moon on June 13th, called the Strawberry Moon because it indicated when the berries were ready for harvest (called the Rose Moon in Europe where strawberries were not indigenous).
June is National Dairy Month, Get Outdoors Month and National Fruit and Vegetable Month!

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• Mid-month, wild strawberries start becoming available, depending on the heat. Purchase wild strawberries from your local farmer’s market or strawberry stand because they are too delicate to ship – the aroma from frais de bois seems almost manufactured in it’s strength and perfume.
• Crystallized flowers are another plate freshener and they are becoming readily available from wholesale suppliers. Mother’s Day is a great time to decorate with any edible flowers!

Mother’s day is mid-month this year – on Sunday, May 11th. Remember that this is the busiest restaurant day of the year so a full weekend of specials may be advantageous to guarantee a book full of reservations.

May availability becomes a bit more predictable towards the end of the month as the weather mellows and crops take hold of their landscapes. Ramps, fiddleheads and other harbingers of spring fade by mid – May to make room for stonefruit, their decline may be a little later this year – because of the late spring. Apricots and the first of the good Peaches will come in at the end of the month and provide a great treat to herald in June!

Plan on cherries, the first of the domestic stonefruit, to be best between Mother’s Day and Father’s Day (these holidays are a great way to remember the fresh cherry season in California). Other regions may start their cherry harvest a bit later to carry the sugar through the early part of the summer. The early cherries are the Burlatt, followed by the Bings in June, with Brooks in the middle; there are other, lesser known varieties, but these are the predominant types.

Lychee and Mangosteen are two international fruits that become more available in May and they are delicious bursts of tropical flavor. Late citrus should be available through almost the end of June: Meyers lemons, tangelos, kumquats and mandarins. Think of mixing some delicious late harvest citrus with some beautiful spring greens, baby roasted beets and some beautiful candied nuts and pansies.

All the flowering herbs are in full swing from mid-May through June – Sage, thyme and chive blossoms are beautiful additions to salads and tabletops.

Remember that the items in BOLD will prove to usually be better values as they are in their peak harvest or storage period.